Taken by: Jackie Stark
By Al Kiem
For not being in a sport, Delavan-Darien High School’s band works harder for marching and playing music than most activities that our school classifies as “sports”. Their marching season, which starts in August and ends in October, consists of lots of preparations and work. From practicing pregame performances for football at 6:30 pm to marching the halls of the school before assemblies. However, those aren’t the only two opportunities that Nicholas Stark, our director, offers for not only the band but the fans who enjoy the performances as well.
For starters, most of the members of the band are in more than one band class. So while they may detest certain parts of marching, they also pride themselves in playing beautiful jazz music. Emily Lock, a senior at DDHS, has been in both marching band and jazz classes since her freshman year. She plays tuba, trombone, baritone, and piano. However, as she is the trombone section leader, her primary instrument is the trombone. Emily’s favorite class is Jazz Ensemble, which is the highest jazz class at DDHS. She found that her favorite aspect of the class is the environment, commenting that “Everyone can play their parts right away and we can all groove together.” Jazz also allowed her to be awarded the Patrick S. Gilmore Award at last school year’s spring concert. She also loves all the experiences marching band offers “Under the football lights, the atmosphere at a game is crazy, especially at homecoming,” she said.
Taken by: Abagail Kiem
Not all opportunities are only jazz-related though. Kaydence Stone, a percussionist, drummer, double bass, and quads (a type of tenor drums) player was awarded the National School Marching Award during the spring band concert last school year. This award is for outstanding contributions to the marching band. Not only is she the loudest on the field, but she is also consistently working with the other percussionists and helping them learn how to properly march as well.
Taken by: Abagail Kiem
The countless opportunities and awards that go to the band are well-earned and should be recognized more. Being in the band isn’t just about marching and poorly playing an instrument. Band is about the music itself, the people, the environment, the opportunities, and so much more. Playing “Hey Baby” by Bruce Channel underneath the Friday night lights at a football game is an experience that not many people can say they’ve lived. With that, stay strong and play on!
thecometeer